To win a union election, you organize a supermajority of your coworkers before you ever file a petition, and you prepare them for the employer’s counter-campaign so it doesn’t peel away the support you built. Unions win roughly 70% of NLRB elections in recent years, but campaigns that file at the legal minimum or skip the groundwork tend to lose. The signed cards from 30% of the unit that federal law requires to trigger an election are a floor, not a goal. Everything below is what experienced organizers actually do between the first quiet conversation and the tally of ballots.
Start With an Organizing Committee
Before anything else, put together an internal committee of workers the rest of the workforce already trusts. Not the loudest union supporters. The people coworkers turn to when something goes wrong. A strong committee pulls from every shift, department, and location so no part of the workforce goes unrepresented. Aim for members equal to roughly 10% to 15% of the eligible workforce, with a wider network of supporters who can carry conversations even if they don’t come to strategy meetings.
The committee’s real work is one-on-one conversations. Private, individual, listening first. Find out what each coworker cares about most — pay, scheduling, safety, favoritism — and connect those concerns to what a contract can actually address. Then track where every worker stands: strong yes, leaning yes, undecided, leaning no, strong no. This is workplace mapping, and it is the single most important tool you have for knowing whether you’re ready to file or need more time.
Don’t File at 30 Percent
The 30% authorization-card threshold in federal law is what it takes to get an election. It is not what it takes to win one. Filing at 30% is a recipe for losing, because support almost always erodes once the employer launches its counter-campaign. Most successful campaigns wait until they have signed cards from at least 65% to 70% of the unit. If your map shows you at 50%, you’re not ready. Keep having conversations.
Know Who Counts in the Unit
Not everyone at your worksite gets to vote, and miscounting the unit can sink a petition. The National Labor Relations Act excludes several categories of workers from the definition of “employee”:1Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 29 USC 152 – Definitions
- Supervisors, meaning anyone with authority to hire, fire, discipline, promote, or assign work using independent judgment, not just a lead worker relaying instructions.
- Managers who formulate and implement employer policy.
- Independent contractors, classified under the common-law agency test that examines the employer’s actual control over how work is performed.
- Agricultural laborers engaged in farming, harvesting, and related activities.
- Domestic workers employed in household service at a private home.
- Confidential employees who assist managers involved in labor-relations decisions and have access to confidential bargaining information.
The supervisor exclusion trips up more campaigns than any other. If your proposed unit sweeps in people management considers supervisors, expect the employer to challenge their eligibility. The test looks at whether the person exercises independent judgment in directing other workers, which is a meaningful standard that goes beyond job titles.
Filing the Petition
Once your cards are in hand and your map shows deep majority support, file a petition with the nearest NLRB Regional Office. Electronic filing is preferred, though you can also fax, hand-deliver, or overnight the paperwork. The petition uses NLRB Form 502, which requires the employer’s legal name, an accurate count of employees in the proposed unit, and the specific job classifications you’re including.2National Labor Relations Board. Steps for Filing a Petition
You have two business days after filing to deliver the original authorization cards (the showing of interest) to the Regional Office.2National Labor Relations Board. Steps for Filing a Petition Miss that deadline and the petition can be dismissed. You also serve a copy of the petition on the employer, which puts them on formal notice. Once notified, the employer has to post a Notice of Petition for Election where employees will see it — bulletin boards, break rooms, and any electronic channels management normally uses to reach staff.3National Labor Relations Board. Conduct Elections
Get the Voter List
Within two business days of an election agreement or direction of election, the employer must turn over a list of eligible voters with names, home addresses, personal email addresses, and phone numbers.4National Labor Relations Board. NLRB Representation Case-Procedures Fact Sheet This is the Excelsior list, and it lets organizers reach workers at home, away from management’s presence. If the list arrives late or incomplete, that’s grounds for an objection later.
Prepare Coworkers for the Counter-Campaign
This is where elections are won or lost. The moment your employer learns about the campaign, expect a response. Some hire anti-union consultants who run a textbook playbook; others improvise. The tactics are remarkably consistent either way.
Federal law lets employers express opinions about unionization so long as those opinions carry no threat of retaliation or promise of benefits.5Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 29 US Code 158 – Unfair Labor Practices Management can say they think the union is a bad idea, hold meetings to make the case, and distribute anti-union literature. What they cannot do falls into four categories that practitioners remember as TIPS:
- Threats that the workplace will close, benefits will vanish, or jobs will be cut if the union wins.
- Interrogation about who signed cards, who attended meetings, or how workers feel about the union.
- Promises of raises, promotions, or new benefits offered to discourage organizing.
- Surveillance of union activity, or conduct that creates the impression workers are being watched.
All of these are unfair labor practices under Section 8(a)(1) of the NLRA.6National Labor Relations Board. Interfering with Employee Rights (Section 7 and 8(a)(1))
Inoculate Against Captive Audience Meetings
Expect mandatory meetings where management makes its case against the union. These are legal so long as management stays out of TIPS territory. The most effective response isn’t filing charges. It’s preparing your coworkers in advance. If workers walk into the meeting already knowing what management will say — that they could lose benefits, that the union just wants dues, that “we’re a family here” — the pitch loses most of its force. Organizers call this inoculation, and running it well is the committee’s central job during the campaign period.
Document Everything
When management crosses from legal opinion into threats, promises, interrogation, or surveillance, write it down right away. Who said it, when, where, and who else was present. Those records become the basis for unfair labor practice charges and, if needed, post-election objections. A pattern of violations can lead the NLRB to set aside the results.
Turn Out Every Yes Vote
Winning requires a simple majority of votes cast, not a majority of eligible voters.3National Labor Relations Board. Conduct Elections That distinction matters. If 100 workers are eligible but only 60 vote, you need 31 votes to win, not 51. A tie goes against the union, because you haven’t achieved a majority. Turnout strategy is as important as persuasion. Every undecided worker who stays home is a missed opportunity. Every no voter who stays home works in your favor.
The NLRB agent assigned to the case decides the time, place, and method for the vote. Most elections happen on-site, though the Board can authorize mail-in ballots or a hybrid when workers are spread across multiple locations or work irregular schedules. The vote is by secret ballot, and both sides can designate observers. Observers help verify voter eligibility and watch the process, but they cannot campaign, wear union or company insignia, or track which individuals have voted. The NLRB agent controls the ballot box throughout and counts the votes in front of the observers once polling closes.
By election day, your committee should know exactly where every worker stands. The job on voting day is making sure every yes and likely yes actually casts a ballot. Know who works which shift, who might forget, and who needs a reminder. Assign committee members to check in with supporters through the day.
After the Ballots Are Counted
Either party has five business days from the tally to file objections with the Regional Director challenging the conduct of the election or anything that affected the outcome.7eCFR. 29 CFR 102.69 – Election Procedure; Tally of Ballots; Objections Objections need a short statement of reasons and a written offer of proof. Once objections are resolved (or if none are filed), the NLRB issues a formal certification. A union win produces a Certification of Representative, which legally obligates the employer to recognize the union and bargain in good faith.3National Labor Relations Board. Conduct Elections After any valid election, federal law bars the NLRB from directing another election in that unit for twelve months.8Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 29 US Code 159 – Representatives and Elections
The First Contract Is the Real Finish Line
Winning the election is a milestone, not the end. Certification gives the union the legal right to bargain; it does not guarantee a contract. Under the NLRA, both sides must meet at reasonable times and bargain in good faith over wages, hours, and other terms and conditions of employment. Neither side has to agree to any particular proposal or make concessions. The law requires genuine engagement, not capitulation.9Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 29 USC 158 – Unfair Labor Practices
First contracts take a long time. Research consistently shows the average first contract takes well over a year to ratify, and a significant share of newly certified unions are still working without a contract two or three years after winning. The duty to bargain does not include a duty to reach a deal quickly, and some employers use delay to erode worker enthusiasm. Keeping the committee active and the full membership in the loop through that period is what separates unions that get a strong first contract from those that never get one.
Mandatory bargaining subjects (the ones the employer cannot refuse to discuss) include compensation like base pay, overtime, bonuses, insurance, and retirement; scheduling of shifts, breaks, and holidays; work rules covering safety, discipline, and drug testing; job protections such as layoff and recall procedures; and grievance processes. Permissive subjects like retiree benefits or expanding the unit can be raised, but neither side has to negotiate over them.
Voluntary Recognition as a Shortcut
An NLRB election isn’t the only route. If a majority of workers sign authorization cards, the union can ask the employer to voluntarily recognize it without an election.10U.S. Department of Labor. Forming a Union at a Non-Union Workplace Some employers agree, particularly when the showing of support is overwhelming. Many refuse, which sends the campaign back to the election route. After voluntary recognition, a bar period protects the union’s status while the parties try to negotiate a first agreement.